To help provide students with greater flexibility and access to courses,Ecampus is requesting proposals for courses to be offered online during a two-week period during winter break 2018-19.

These courses are considered “term-extension courses” as recently communicated by the Office of the Registrar to provide innovative course offerings that the traditional term schedule has not always provided. (See more on the registrar’s website.)

This winter two-week session would run from Dec. 24, 2018, through Jan. 6, 2019. The courses in this pilot would be fully online and asynchronous. If this initial offering of courses proves successful, the hope is to offer a two-week session annually. These courses would be delivered via Ecampus and would use the Ecampus tuition and revenue share model.

Which courses?

Not every course can be offered in a two-week session, but some can be taught successfully in this format. Some course types that might work well include:

1- or 2-credit courses, as each credit hour earned requires 30 hours of work

3-credit courses could also work, but would require about 45 hours of work per week for students

Courses that have been offered in condensed formats for past years during the summer

Courses that serve as introductions to majors, career explorations, or which would benefit from student immersion in the subject over a short period of time

In-demand, higher-enrollment courses

Courses that do not require textbook purchase/delivery (e.g. courses that use open educational resources or resources available online through OSU Libraries)

What support is available?

Course development funding ($1,000-$5,000), plus instructional design and multimedia development services, as well as faculty training for online course development and teaching as needed.

How will students know these courses are available?

These courses will display in the traditional schedule of classes, and students can register for them as they would any other course. Academic units will benefit from promoting these unique courses with students in their programs. Additionally, Ecampus and the Office of the Registrar will collaboratively create a list of these courses so advisors have a handy resource to share with students they think could benefit from the opportunity.

Are these courses a good fit for all students?

All students learn differently, and it will be important for students to consider if a condensed class will work for them. Advisors can often help students with this topic. Also, some funding programs (such as veterans benefits) may be limited in how they can support their students. It is important that the student is fully aware of their own funding requirements when they register for these courses.

How can you submit proposals and by when?

If you are interested in teaching courses in this format during this year’s winter break, submit a brief proposal by Monday, May 28, using the Ecampus Online Course Proposal Form. When submitting your proposal, please indicate that you are submitting a proposal for the Winter 2019 Two-Week Session Pilot.

Several questions provide text boxes where you can supply additional information about your proposal. Somewhere in your proposal (such as in the response to “Who is the audience for this course?”), please include information about the following:

Information about any known audiences for a two-week format for the proposed course, if available

Has the course been offered in an accelerated format previously, such as during a short Summer Session? If so, was this accelerated offering online, hybrid or face-to-face?

Please share this call for proposals with faculty who may be interested. If you have questions, please let me know.